Suicide and
the Bible
(NASB)
1) The Bible Records People Dying by Suicide
Quite apart from whether the people are of genuine faith, the Bible records several people who died by suicide (i.e. Saul, Ahithophel, Zimri, Judas Iscariot). However, Scripture never explicitly states a doctrine that suicide itself automatically results in eternal condemnation:
Saul (first king of Israel)
· Then Saul said to his armor bearer, "Draw
your sword and pierce me through with it, otherwise these uncircumcised will
come and pierce me through and make sport of me." But his armor bearer
would not, for he was greatly afraid. So Saul took his sword and fell on it (I
Samuel 31:4).
Ahithophel
(Bathsheba’s grandfather – King David’s counselor)
· Now when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his donkey and arose and went to his home, to his city, and set his house in order, and strangled himself; thus he died and was buried in the grave of his father (II Samuel 17:23).
Zimri (5th
king of Israel for 7 days – conspired to become king)
·
When Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went
into the citadel of the king's house and burned the king's house over him with
fire, and died (I Kings 16:18).
Judas Iscariot (betrayed Jesus)
· And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple
sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself (Matthew 27:5).
In each case, the Bible describes self-termination of life but it does not present suicide as a separate unforgivable sin. God alone judges the soul.
2) Sanctity of Human Life - Suicide is a Sin
While the Bible does not teach that suicide automatically damns a person, Scripture does affirm the sanctity of human life as the self-termination of a life is a sin. Because we are each part of a larger family and society, suicide ultimately injures society.
We are made in God’s image:
· God
created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and
female He created them (Genesis 1:27).
Murder is a sin:
·
"You shall
not murder" (Exodus 20:13).
Our bodies belong to God:
·
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of
the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not
your own? For you have been bought with a
price: therefore glorify God in your body (I Corinthians 6:19-20).
Suicide is morally wrong as it results the termination of a life that God created. Suicide bypasses God’s authority over life and death.
God alone ultimately judges the soul. Suicide is certainly tragic but it is not beyond Christ’s forgiveness.
Sinfulness does not automatically result in eternal condemnation, because forgiveness is grounded in Christ.
3) Scripture Acknowledges Overwhelming Despair & God’s Compassion
Mental distress and human weakness are often a normal part of life’s challenges. The Bible does not hide human anguish. It is very real.
Elijah asked God to let him die:
·
But he himself went a day's journey into the
wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree; and he requested for
himself that he might die, and said, "It is enough; now, O LORD, take my
life, for I am not better than my fathers" (I Kings 19:4).
Job wished that he had never been born:
· "Why did I not die at birth, Come forth from the womb and
expire?" (Job 3:11).
Jonah asked for his own death:
· "Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life
from me, for death is better to me than life" (Jonah 4:3).
David freely expressed his grief and despair to God:
· How long, LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? How long am I to feel anxious in my soul, With grief in my heart all the day? (Psalm 3:1-2).
·
My soul is in despair within me (Psalm 42:6).
·
For my soul has had enough troubles, And my life
has drawn near to Sheol (Psalm 88:3).
These are not faithless people; they are
people who are suffering. The passages show that even faithful servants of God
experience extreme emotional and psychological anguish. The Bible reflects deep
compassion toward people suffering profound despair Scripture emphasizes God’s
compassion and tells us that He is near to the brokenhearted:
·
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted And saves
those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18).
·
The LORD is
near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth (Psalm
145:18).
· …and
weep with those who weep (Romans 12:15).
We live in a world where pain can be
overwhelming… often in ways that others cannot see or understood.
Thoughts of suicide can overwhelm any person having
spiritual, physical, or psychological oppression, emotional trauma, severe
depression, or other threatening situations. Satan is capable of threatening
any faithful or well-intentioned person. It is not our prerogative to judge
such souls who have been so overwhelmed.
Each of us does not face the same dilemma in
life as another and we are not equally equipped to adequately deal with such dilemmas.
However, none of it nullifies our sealed salvation.
4) Christ Knows Suffering
Christ knows what it is to suffer and to
endure enormous suffering. He understands fully our anguish and our suffering.
He bore pain and suffering. He knows our anguish. He conquered death for those
who trust in His finished work. He was despised and rejected… mocked,
oppressed, humiliated, crushed, beaten, scourged, pierced. Yet, amazingly, and
thankfully, it is by His wounds that we have been healed:
· He
was despised and abandoned by men, A man of great pain and familiar with
sickness; And like one from whom people hide their faces, He was despised, and
we had no regard for Him. However, it was our sicknesses that He Himself bore,
And our pains that He carried; Yet we ourselves assumed that He had been
afflicted, Struck down by God, and humiliated. But He was pierced for our
offenses, He was crushed for our wrongdoings; The punishment for our well-being
was laid upon Him, And by His wounds we are healed… He was oppressed and
afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth
(Isaiah 53:3-5,7).
Our ultimate hope is not in understanding
everything… but in Christ who suffered, died, and rose again conquering death
for all time.
5) There is Only One Unforgivable Sin
Mentioned in the Bible
Murder and suicide are both grievous sins but
neither is unforgivable. Jesus mentions only one sin that will not be forgiven
and that is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which is essentially the
persistent, perpetual, continual, stubborn refusal to believe in Christ… but it
does not include suicide:
· "Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy
shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be
forgiven" (Matthew 12:31).
Suicide is a forgivable sin. If it was
unforgivable, it would undermine the sufficiency of Christ’s atonement.
6) Salvation in the Bible is Based on Faith in
Christ, Not on any Final Sin Committed
The New Testament consistently teaches that
eternal life is based on faith in Jesus Christ, not on any single sin:
·
"For God so
loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in
Him shall not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
·
…that if you
confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God
raised Him from the dead, you will be saved… (Romans 10:9).
· For by grace you have been saved through
faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of
works, so that no one may boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Since salvation is grounded in Christ’s
completed work, a single sin, even a tragic one, does not overturn Christ’s
atonement. Our hope rests in Christ’s finished work, not in one moment that
ends our earthly life:
·
Therefore there is now no condemnation for those
who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).
Scripture emphasizes that God sees and knows
the heart:
·
"…man looks at
the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (I Samuel 16:7).
It do not undermine God’s sovereign grace. Suicide
does not cancel God’s saving grace. Scripture teaches that Christ’s sacrifice
covers any and all sin for those who belong to Him as all is forgiven through
Christ’s atonement:
· …but
if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with
one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin (I John
1:7).
·
…where sin increased, grace abounded all
the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, so also grace would reign through
righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 5:20-21).
·
When you were dead in your transgressions and the
uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having
forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt
consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it
out of the way, having nailed it to the cross (Colossians 2:13-14).
·
For by one offering He has perfected for all time
those who are sanctified (Hebrews 10:14).
Because Christ died for sins… past, present,
and future, believers are not saved or lost depending on whether they had time
to confess their final sin before death. Suicide is a tragic sin but it is not
beyond Christ’s forgiveness and redemption.
We should emphasize God’s mercy rather than
declaring condemnation. God’s mercy is greater than human understanding. Only God
knows and judges the heart.
God can and does sometimes use suicide to
bring glory to Himself:
·
And we know that God causes all things to work
together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).
The Bible does not state that suicide automatically condemns a person.
The true believer is preserved by God. (This is most certainly assured
within the context of Calvinism.)
7) Our Faithful Response
At such a devastating time as a suicide, it is
important for us to respond with a biblical approach and understanding of compassion,
grace, mercy, humility, not with judgment. God’s mercy is greater than our
human understanding.
We are to be an encouragement to those who are
involved in such a death as suicide, or any death, and to be mindful that hope
rests in what Christ has done, not in suffering a single moment at the end of
life. Just as God is, we, too, are to be compassionate to those having to bear
the enormous hurt of a suicide:
·
"A bent reed He will not break off" (Isaiah 42:3).
God knows each of our own frailties, that we
were made of dust, and that He makes provision for us in our failings:
· For He Himself knows our form; He is mindful that we are nothing but
dust (Psalm 103:14).
God clearly understands suffering just as deeply, or likely more so,
than we do:
·
For we do not have a high priest who cannot
sympathize with our weaknesses… (Hebrews
4:15).
If the person knows Christ, our confidence is
in Him. Only He knows the heart. There are some things that only He knows:
· "The secret things belong to the LORD our God…" (Deuteronomy 29:29).
God is both just and compassionate. We can
trust Him with what we cannot see.
Grief following a suicide is usually quite prolonged,
with many ensuing issues, often mixed with misunderstandings, confusion, isolation,
and guilt. Healing invariably takes much time.
Christians and the church must be safe people
and safe places for lament of the hurting ones. We do not have all the answers
but we can be an encouragement to others to trust God for His mercy and
justice. We need to journey with those who are most affected by a suicide.
Following a suicide, our primary ministry to
those grieving is to listen and to be present… most often without offering our explanations.
